Like many of the worlds biggest stars, Messi does his fair share for charity. He is a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF, has his own charity set up in his name, as well as making numerous other appearances and donations the world over. Yet its the Messi and friends series of charity games that casts doubts on the veracity of these charitable endeavours. Germanys Der Spiegel claimed this year that they have evidence that Robert Lewandowski was offered 180,000 to participate in a Messi and friends vs the rest of the world charity game back in 2013. Lewandowski declined the offer, but plenty of other pros happily took part, presumably handsomely recompensed in spite of the games supposed charitable nature. Der Spiegel doesnt stop there, however. They claim that of the $7.9m generated for charity, only $300,000 went to Messi's foundation. The rest appears unaccounted for, leading to suggestions the series of games were conducted primarily to line the pockets of footballers and agents alike.
